Friday 27 December 2024

Day 365 away today from Melbourne and day 416 since leaving Cairns and starting the house sitting, pet sitting, wandering nomad year in Europe. Overseas, we had 74% of our days free of accommodation costs. Flashy reckons this saved us $58,000 in potential accommodation costs. Trusted House Sitters and the Ogilvy clan were our saviours.

Of this free accommodation, 40 days used up up all our home exchange points and the remaining 229 days, minding friends and others’ houses and pets. We looked after cats, dogs, chooks and ducks. All of which were delightful. The 16% of days for which we paid accommodation, were mainly BnB’s and 3 star hotels and again, these were all pretty good. Average nightly cost was $217.

After checking out of the hotel, we went for a long walk, as we will be entombed in the A380 for 24 hours. The  limo arrived on time and the check in at Charles de Gaul was seamless. The Emirates lounge is a bit dated and according to Lady P, the Moet et Chandon was flat and warm. This was, of course, remedied on complaint but the lounge was a disappointment. However, as Flashy was about to respond, it was free and was not out in the corridor with the great unwashed - but thought better of it.

The trip to Dubai was in a crowded (overbooked as it turned out) business class cabin but the service was OK. A couple of tactical cat naps and some Champagne eased the stress of the 6.5 hour flight. Then the 12.5 hours to Melbourne in a very sparsely booked cabin was pretty good with light meals and not too much booze. As a result, we arrived in Melbourne in pretty good shape. Quite a change to the good old days of gallons of free booze, eat all on the menu and sleep, well not much. No wonder it took us days to recover back then.